Home Forums Miscellaneous Topics Rural Living How are you doing with 2nd crop hay?

Got a good start on 2nd crop hay today.

What percent moister is the alfalfa, or is it something else?

We had a little rain and the irrigation is going well. Areas that don't get as much water (high spots and steep areas) are already blooming but the part that got a lot of water looks better than the 1st cut.

Has that hay been raked together into bigger windrows? How wide is your cutting machine?

Are you making pellets?

Alfalfa is between 50-60%.

Pickup header is 10 feet.

Two swaths raked in.

No, going into pit silo.

When I use to try haylage it turned sour, and our cattle would not eat it. What ever works for you.

You must not have much rock if you can rake windrows, and run through a chopper.

1st crop haylage, no, second crop 0k. Goes into pit silo with plastic cover and have good success.

Certain fields have some rocks, but knock on wood, been real lucky,

To answer the first question, we just brought in the last big squares the hoop building will hold. The rest will get rolled in big round bales. Great quality hay, but it is dry here, we need a good rain.

Roundoak, that is nice lookin' country and quite the operation!


We just got done with first cutting and are now wrapping up flood irrigating those fields for the second time.


Generally only get 2 cuttings a year but it's been so hot lately with no end in sight so I'm guessing we'll get 3 this year. Stuff is growing like crazy.

Dry land alfalfa/grass 'burned up' a month ago and wasn't even worth cutting.


$200/ton here which is almost double from what it usually is.


Gonna try to bale up 70 acres of dry land hay barley tomorrow morning but the windrows are so thin that I'm afraid the balers might not even pick it up.

We basically cut it just to try and cut down the fire hazard.

Interesting comment about a fire hazard, Sam. We worry about mature corn fields catching on fire. Two years ago a neighbors combine caught on fire and destroyed about 100 acres of corn.

Roundoak, I am jealous of all that green in your pics.

Truly beautiful country.

Nice looking stuff, when did you take the first cutting off?

Real wet spring here, we just did our first mowing of dry hay the other day. We probably have a good two weeks or so before we can think about some second. It's coming back pretty good on spots we took off for silage/ baleage

Sam, this country has a lot of beautiful country, we just happen to have some of it.

Ben, first cutting was 3rd week of May. We had a lot of moisture this spring and a lot of corn and beans got planted late, but most of my hay ground is on the ridges and we got a week of great drying days late May.

You are taking good care of it....

That's a chopper! How do those trailers unload, dump, apron chain, live floor?

Kingston, live floor unload.

That's some beautiful equipment.

Have not gotten the 1st (and only) cutting here yet. hopefully soon with a good weather window.

We baled 300 small squares first week of June I didn't fertilize this year but 2nd cut looks due around august

Probably put up with to much moisture. Anything over 70% won't allow proper fermentation.

Or, it was not packed correctly. In order to make haylage, it has to be as anaerobic as possible. Anything even close to correct and cows will eat it like candy. Truly good haylage has the problem of cows eating too much of it, not too little, making themselves sick.